It has come to my attention via my mortgage broker that my Malmesbury the law firm I have appointed is not on the lender Conveyancing panel. What can I do to check?
The first thing you need to do is to contact your Malmesbury conveyancer. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to inform you what has happened. Where they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a Malmesbury conveyancing firm that is on the approved list of lawyers for your mortgage company.
Can I use your services to find a Conveyancing solicitor in Malmesbury even if I’m not buying or disposing of a house, for instance where I want to acquire a shop in Malmesbury with a loan from Accord Mortgages Ltd?
The service is mainly used to locate domestic conveyancing solicitors in Malmesbury but we have recorded towards the end of this page a selection of Malmesbury commercial conveyancing firms. You should make contact with the company directly to see if they can also act for Accord Mortgages Ltd
I have 7378 less than 75 years left on my lease and need a lease extension for my flat in Malmesbury. Conveyancing solicitors on the The Mortgage Works panel can deal with such extensions right?
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are obtaining a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. The Mortgage Works have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 17/3/2026 the requirements read as follows :
Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed:
Second hand property:
- If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years
- if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported
- For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
New build property:
- If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house)
- For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below.
SECOND HAND PROPERTIES
Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 70 years
- Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term
- Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more
- Ground Rent is compounded RPI
- Ground Rent review period less than or equal to 5 years
Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Unexpired lease term is 70 to 85 years
- Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building*
- Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary
Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years
- Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value
- Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years
- Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI
NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions)
Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being reviewed and altered on any review basis or methodology
Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary
Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house
- A lease subject to a peppercorn ground rent (annual rent) charges
For the avoidance of doubt, any new build properties completed but not sold pre 30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the lease conforms to the above guidance
* Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following:
- How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property?
- The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit
- What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned?
- What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease?
- Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process?
- Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years
LEASE EXTENSIONS
We require all lease extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to the Issuing Office
Please ensure that all lender enquiries are submitted (with full documentation/requirements) at least 2 weeks prior to exchange to allow sufficient time for review and decisioning.
What can a local search reveal regarding the property I am purchasing in Malmesbury?
Malmesbury conveyancing often commences with the submitting local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search organisations for example Xpress Legal The local search is essential in every Malmesbury conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any nasty once you have moved into your property. The search should provide information on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of thirteen topic sections.
I decided to have a survey carried out on a house in Malmesbury before retaining conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the property. Our surveyor advised that some banks will not grant a mortgage on this type of house.
It varies from the lender to lender. Lloyds has different requirements from Nationwide. If you e-mail us we can look into this further via the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Malmesbury. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Malmesbury especially if they are familiar with such properties in Malmesbury.
I work for a long established estate agent office in Malmesbury where we have experienced a few flat sales put at risk as a result of short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Malmesbury conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?
As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.
An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.
Malmesbury Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries before Purchasing
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Does this lease have more than 82 years unexpired? Does the lease include onerous restrictions? It would be sensible to find out as much as possible regarding the managing agents as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you will be at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day matters such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. Don't be shy to ask other people what they think of their management. On a final note, investigate as to the dates that the service fees are due to the managing agents and precisely how they are spending the funds.